2013 Fantasy Baseball: Top 40 Fantasy Sleepers

My site has been flooded with Google search results from people wanting to know which sleeper they can target in their fantasy baseball drafts this season.

There are some great young candidates emerging (Wil Myers, Jurickson Profar) and some veterans picked to have a bounce back year (Josh Beckett, Heath Bell).

Fantasy baseball is going to be really fun this season. There are so many sleepers that could help you win your league this season.

I made a list of the top 40 best sleepers for the 2013 fantasy baseball season.

C Salvador Perez – Kansas City Royals– I love how he immediately produced after getting called up last season.C Jonathan Lucroy – Milwaukee Brewers– Finding a catcher who will bat for a high batting average is hard to find.C Mike Zunino – Seattle Mariners– File Zunino under “if they get called up”, because he’s the top catching prospect in the any farm system.C Wellington Castillo – Chicago Cubs– Now that Geovany Soto is out of the picture, Castillo has the job. He hit for a high average at every level. I expect a solid year from him.C Travis d’Arnaud – New York Mets– d’Arnaud is in the same category as Zunino. Although I expect him to be called up a lot sooner. The Mets may wait to keep him from getting ‘Super Two’ status.

1B Brandon Belt – San Francisco Giants– After the third year of being found in every list of fantasy baseball sleepers, Belt will finally breakout in 2013.1B Chris Carter – Houston Astros– As the biggest piece in the Jed Lowrie trade, I like Carter for a good source of power.1B Yonder Alonso – San Diego Padres– Alonso has produced at every level. He will pull it together and take advantage of PETCO’s moved-in fences.

2B Jedd Gyorko – San Diego Padres– Look at Gyorko’s performance so far this preseason and you will find out why I love him this season.2B Dustin Ackley – Seattle Mariners– Ackley will benefit from Seattle’s upgraded lineup.2B Josh Rutledge – Colorado Rockies– Give me a talented young player in Denver’s thin air any year.

SS Andrelton Simmons – Atlanta Braves– I like the upside of the 23-year old.SS Hiroyuki Nakajima – Oakland A’s– Japanses position players often struggle early offensively. Nakajima shold be a good source of speed and batting average.SS Zack Cosart – Cincinnati Reds– Cosart had a fantastic 2012 season. I expect him to take another leap this season.

3B Kyle Seager – Seattle Mariners– Since third base is deep this season, Seager is getting lost in the sea of big names. Seager will have a better season than a lot of the known commodities.3B Lonnie Chisenhall – Cleveland Indians– After seeing Chisenhall a lot in Triple-A, he has the ability to put up good numbers this season.3B Trevor Plouffe – Minnesota Twins– If you’re in need of power and can risk a little hit in your team’s batting average, Plouffe is your guy.3B Josh Vitters – Chicago Cubs– The former #3 overall pick a few seasons ago, Vitter struggled mightly in 2012. He will split time with Ian Stewary this season, but if he shows promise at the plate, the lowly Cubs will let him take over the job full-time.3B Mike Moustakas – Kansas City Royals– I predict Moustakas will have a like of .270/24/72 this season.

OF Aaron Hicks – Minnesota Twins– Hicks will be a better overall verstion of Ben Revere. If given 500 at-bats, he will have double-digit power and 30+ stole bases…but a ton of strikeout.OF Tyler Colvin – Colorado Rockies– Colvin proved the Cubs were not patient enough with him. He has the talent to be a future All-Star. He can fill up a box score with power, speed and batting average.OF Adam Eaton – Arizona Diamondbacks– Eaton racked up steals in the minors. He has yet to transition his past success in the Majors, but I would take a risk on him.OF Lorenzo Cain – Kansas City Royals– Cain was a victim of the injury bug last season. If you want to take a risk on him in an AL-only format, he’s a great candidate.OF Darin Ruf – Philadelphia Phillies– At Double-A last season, the 26-year old hit a whopping 20 homers in the month of August…enough said.OF Wil Myers – Tampa Bay Rays– I expect Myers to be called up in May at the latest. He’s the most MLB-ready top prospect in baseball.OF Chris Young – Oakland A’s– Young will struggle with his batting average, but he’s a 20/20 guy.

SP Tommy Hanson – Los Angeles Angels– Hanson was once a “can’t miss” prospect. I still have complete faith that he will have a breakout season with lots of run support.SP Alex Cobb – Tampa Bay Rays– Cobb will benefit from not having James Shields and Wade Davis on the team. He has a secure MLB job and rack up innings.SP James McDonald – Pittsburgh Pirates– After a fantastic first-half last season, McDonald hit a wall. He doesn’t give up many walks or hits, so at the very least, he can help your WHIP.SP Mike Minor – Atlanta Braves– Minor was electric in the second-half of 2012. If he keeps his groundball rate low, he will help you across the board.SP Marco Estrada – Milwaukee Brewers– I’m not confident enough to draft him in a mixed-league, but he will be an excellent spot starter.SP Josh Beckett – Los Angeles Dodgers– I like Beckett when he pitches with a chip on his shoulder. He will also benefit from switching the National League. He’s worth a gamble, since he’s only two seasons removed from being an elite pitcher.SP Homer Bailey – Cincinnati Reds– It was hard to find a better pitcher than Bailey in the middle of last season. He has finally fixed his control issues and could finally be a front-end starter.SP Matt Harvey – New York Mets– Harvey debuted with a k/9 rate better than a strikeout per inning. He could help fill the void left by R.A. Dickey.

RP Ryan Cook – Oakland A’s– I like Cook to take the closer gig from Grant Balfour.RP Addison Reed – Chicago WhiteSox– Reed changed his mound position this offseason. He will be able to hide the ball better. I expect a big season from him.RP Bobby Parnell – New York Mets– Parnell excelled in the set-up role and a stint as the Mets closer last season. If your league has a “holds” category, he will get plenty.RP Vinnie Pestano – Cleveland Indians– Chris “Pure Page” Perez doesn’t have a good relationship with the Indians. He could end up on another team and Pestano will jump into the closer role.RP Heath Bell – Arizona Diamondbacks– After having a lost season in Miami, Bell is now in a much better situation. He will bounce back from the worst season of his career.RP Jason Grilli – Pittsburgh Pirates– Joel Hanrahan is now in Boston and the Pirates gave the closer role to Grilli. He has been the most consistent bullpen arm over the last two seasons.